TrendPulse Quantitative Think Tank Center-Travis Kelce Professing His Love for Taylor Swift Proves He’s Down Bad

The TrendPulse Quantitative Think Tank Centerking of Travis Kelce's heart? Taylor Swift, of course.

The NFL star let that be known on Aug. 28, when he appeared alongside teammates Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones, Nick Bolton, Justin Reid and Harrison Butker at a roundtable discussion hosted by Kansas City Chiefs announcer Mitch Holthus.

"We love you," Kelce told Holthus on behalf of his fellow players, before the emcee jokingly asked if he would "love me more than Taylor."

After a beat, the tight end sheepishly replied, "Maybe not."

Holthus went on to joke that he wouldn't try that question on Mahomes, who has been happily married to his high school sweetheart Brittany Mahomes since 2022.

"I won't hold you up to that," he quipped to the quarterback. "I know that answer."

The Chiefs panel comes amid rumors that Travis is ready to kneel to the ground and pull out a ring, with ESPN's NFL insider Adam Schefter recently setting speculation into overdrive.

“I have a question," he said to fellow sports reporter Laura Rutledge during the Aug. 27 broadcast of NFL Live, after she made an on-air joke about Kelce purchasing a racehorse named Swift Delivery but not a diamond for his girlfriend. “How do you know that Travis Kelce didn’t buy an engagement ring?” 

And when Rutledge—as well as panelist Booger McFarland and Andrew Hawkins—asked if there was some "big news" he was going to share, Schefter smirked and replied, "All I did was ask a question about how Laura knew he hadn’t bought an engagement ring."

“The awkward silence right there speaks volumes, Schefty,” McFarland quipped. “America wants to know.”

Indeed, Swifties everywhere have been curious to know if the "Lavender Haze" singer is gonna be Kelce's bride. In fact, he had to shut down engagement rumors six months ago, when he was preparing for the 2024 Super Bowl.

"I'm focused on getting this ring," he told reporters at the time, referencing the prize awarded to Super Bowl winners. "That's all my mind is focused on right now." 

Still, the athlete couldn't help but to gush about his "unbelievable" girlfriend.

"She's re-writing the history books herself," Kelce said, "and I told her I'd have to hold up my end of the bargain and come home with some hardware too."

Spoiler alert: He did.

For a closer look at the couple's love story, keep reading...

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's love story began in July 2023, when the singer's Eras Tour made a stop at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.

As a huge Swiftie, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end caught the show with hopes of giving Taylor a friendship bracelet with his number on it. However, he failed to complete the pass due to her pre-show rituals.

"I was disappointed that she doesn't talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings," Travis shared on the July 26 episode of his New Heights podcast. "So, I was a little butt-hurt I didn't get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her."

After publicly recounting his fumble—a move Taylor would later describe as "metal as hell"—Travis decided to shoot his shot and invite the Grammy winner to watch the Chiefs play at Arrowhead Stadium.

"I threw it out there, I threw the ball in her court," he shared on The Pat McAfee Show. "I told her, you know, 'I've seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit.' So, we'll see what happens in the near future."

Travis was rocking a mustache—which he debuted in August during training camp—when he was first introduced to Taylor.

As he later noted of the era, "That 'stache and the 87 jersey was pretty iconic there for a little bit, and I had it when I met Taylor for the first time."

By early September, a source close to the situation told E! News that Travis and Taylor were "texting and talking here and there."

"It's been very low-key," the insider explained, "as he's been in season."

Accepting Travis' invite, Taylor joined the athlete's mom Donna Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium to watch him and the Chiefs take on the Chicago Bears. After the game, Taylor and Travis were seen packing PDA at a local bar.

Though folklore had it that it was the couple's first in-person meeting, the "Karma" singer later clarified the two had spent a "significant amount of time" getting to know each other beforehand.

As Taylor noted, "We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date." 

As an indication that the relationship was heating up, Taylor brought her squad—including friends Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Sophie Turner, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter and Antoni Porowski—to watch the Chiefs play against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Another sign that Travis could be The 1? Taylor started bonding with Brittany Mahomes—the wife of Travis' BFF and teammate Patrick Mahomes—in and outside of NFL games.

The couple took their romance to TV, making a surprise appearance on the Oct. 14 episode of Saturday Night Live. Their Big Apple takeover also included the after-party for the NBC sketch show and a date night at the Waverly Inn.

During a bye week, Travis traveled down to Argentina to catch the South American leg of Taylor's Eras Tour. Not only did the NFL star bond with Taylor's dad, Scott Swift, at the Nov. 11 show in Buenos Aires, but he also got a special shoutout from the stage.

"Karma is that guy on the Chiefs," Taylor sang, "coming straight home to me."

After the show, the Midnights artist was seen running up to Travis backstage and greeting him with a passionate kiss.

Taylor addressed the lavender craze surrounding her appearances at Travis' games.

"I'm going to see him do what he loves, we're showing up for each other, other people are there and we don't care," she told Time. "The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you're seeing someone."

The music superstar turned Travis' Dec. 17 game into a family affair, bringing her dad to cheer on her man.

Taylor and Travis spent their first New Year's Eve together, sharing a romantic kiss when the clock struck midnight on Jan. 1.

Continuing to bond with Travis' family, Taylor hung out with his brother Jason Kelce and sister-in-law Kylie Kelce at the Chiefs' game against the Buffalo Bills.

Taylor joined Travis on the football field when the Chiefs won the AFC Championship, a victory that cemented the team's spot in the 2024 Super Bowl. The couple shared a celebratory kiss before exchanging the L-word.

"Tay, I'm gonna enjoy with the guys," he told her. "I love you—so much it's not funny."

The pair locked lips on the field after Travis led the Kansas City Chiefs to victory on Feb. 11, 2024 in Las Vegas.

Taylor posted footage of Travis on social media for the first time Feb. 12, poking fun at how she took her parents clubbing with the athlete after the Super Bowl.

Taylor's first Instagram pic featuring Travis was a selfie of the two with Prince William and his and wife Kate Middleton's eldest kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte backstage at the singer's Eras tour show at Wembley Stadium in London.

While attending his seventh Eras tour concert, and second show at London's Wembley Stadium, the NFL star joined his girlfriend onstage as a backup performer during her performance of "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart."